Tories hit new low

[Jalisco]

The Tories are planning to introduce a Bill of Rights which limits and removes human rights. If there was ever any moral high ground for the UK to tell other countries how to manage their affairs, this ends that. How dare the world expect us to honour the basic human rights of people?

www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-61887933

6 proven cases of electoral fraud in the last election. 6 out of 32 million votes cast.

Do please stop letting facts get in the way of a good mythology. Donald Trump isn't the only person who can wield fictional anecdotes as facts.

Tory policy seems to be if the law says you’re corrupt, don’t submit to justice, change the law so your corruption becomes Legal.

They have no shame. A vote for them now is a vote for policies hitler would have been proud of.

We lived in TH when Lutfur Rahman carried out his fraud. It was appalling.

Having to show photo ID for voting is a very good idea.

There is no end to what awfulness some British people will support in the belief it will harm foreigners. They’ll even support the erosion of their own human rights because apparently it only makes it shit for ‘other humans’. Fucking dumb and spiteful and the people who support this deserve everything coming to them.

There is no end to what awfulness some British people will support in the belief it will harm foreigners. They’ll even support the erosion of their own human rights because apparently it only makes it shit for ‘other humans’. Fucking dumb and spiteful and the people who support this deserve everything coming to them

Yes. This is precisely what the Tories - and specifically BJ and the Ultras - want to weaponise. Xenophobia, distrust and hatred.

I judge the fuck out of Tory voters these days, and that troubles me, as it's something I've never done before.

"If people in the poorest part of the UK (Northern Ireland) are able to access photo ID ahead of voting free of charge, so will those in England, Scotland and Wales. "

I believe you can apply for Electoral ID card in NI.

It's not on offer in England to my knowledge.
Pensioners bus passes are acceptable ID. Student cards are not permitted.

Six cases of voter fraud in 2019 GE.

It's a solution in search of a problem.

@Jalisco - I was scrolling through the thread and was planning on quoting Pastor Niemöller and see that you've already done so

There is a really good book on this written by an American. A good example is “Obamacare”. The very people who needed it opposed it because it would help brown and black people. They are now suffering for their stupidity.

They are simply used as instruments of hatred when the real culprits - rich and powerful - smile at the easily fooled.

MN truncated my post

I'll try and remember the rest of my post ....

The was because who will speak for us after they've taken away all our rights?

The Overton window has truly shifted into scary territory

I'm another Scot who hopes that we'll be able to escape the shitshow that is WM. I've already committed to hosting a refugee camp in our back garden for English MNers who are equally appalled at what's going on

Voter ID hasn't passed into legislation in GB yet.

But the point is that the claims it would disenfranchise the poor doesn't really stand up. The example of free voter ID in Northern Ireland demonstrates it.

From the UK Government website:

"The perception that our electoral system is vulnerable to fraud is damaging for public confidence."

This perception is why it was brought in for Northern Ireland in 1985. It built confidence I the system and it will do so in GB too.

And voter ID is in the legislation for GB as being free too. From the UK Government website:

"Local authorities will be required, by law, to provide a Voter Card free of charge where an elector does not have one of the approved forms of photo identification. A similar provision will be established for anonymous electors who will be able to apply for a free anonymous elector Voter Card should they wish to vote in person."

This would bring GB into line with Northern Ireland.

Effectively, the objections some have with voter ID cards are easily dealt with and it doesn't undermine democracy.

After all, we use ID for a wide range of things in daily life. For example, ID may be requested when it comes to sales of restricted items such as alcohol, medication and fireworks.

Voter ID is the norm in continental Europe and 33 out of 37 OECD countries require voter ID.

The UK should modernise how we vote in line with much of the world.

So they've passed the Elections Bill but not the provisions relating to ID cards? Is is part of the Elections Bill?
And there will be central funding for this?
I presume they will be free?

I'm also going to presume that the ID cards will be easily available prior to the next GE.

I've been thinking about leaving this country for a couple of years, more seriously so in the last year. The way this country is being run (into the ground) is just fucking depressing, and people are sleepwalking into a dictatorship.

I honestly can't understand why ANYONE would vote Tory in the next election. I get the fact local issues play a part but Jesus Christ BJ won't go unless he loses, and his party seem prepared to put up with any old shit because they think he's a 'vote winner'. Blows my mind.

I think it’s a bit optimistic to say that voter ID will be “easily dealt with” when the government have so far shown that prioritising competent online systems (see post-Brexit EU residents fiasco) and sharing accurate, timely information is not really their strong point. But I hope voter ID supporters are right!

The other, bigger problem with the Elections Bill is that the Electoral Commission is now under government control. There will be no independent commission.

from the article:

“When I asked the chair of the [Electoral] Commission, John Pullinger, if the Elections Act is incompatible with the body’s independence, he was direct: “Yes.”

It’s easy to see why he takes this view. In future, the UK government will issue a regular strategy and policy statement outlining its electoral priorities, which the Commission will be bound by law to follow—whether these relate to political finance, guidance for electoral administrators or anything else, and no matter how objectionable they are.”

So what do we call it when elections are no longer free and fair? When the police are not held accountable for failings, including failures to investigate rape and violence against women? When people who haven’t committed a crime are tagged and held indefinitely in detention centres? Is that a functioning democracy?

So, this Voter ID card that the local authorities will be required by law to provide free of charge - does this come out of the local authority's wallet? I'm assuming generous funding would be provided for this, by the central authority requiring it? (Tui, anybody?)

Anyone who can't see where this is heading is either an idiot or doesn't want to see.

Forgot to link my article about the Electoral commission that I quoted from (same one as I posted upthread)

www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/magazine/the-electoral-commission-is-now-under-government-control-fear-for-uk-democracy-john-pullinger-interview-elections-act

It baffles me to hear the left talk about illegal immigration. They seem to think that any attempt to stop people breaking the ing law is bigoted and outrageous! They are ILLEGAL immigrants. Understand? They have come here illegally. Call me old-fashioned, but I don't believe people should be rewarded for breaking he law.

This problem is only going to get worse and worse. And the reason is simple - Africa's birth rate. Africa has the highest birth rate in the world. In fact, its birth rate is so high that its population is going to double by 2050. (Yes, I know many of the current migrants are from Iran and Afghanistan; my point is simply that this will never end).

I don't see why it's such a big deal to want full control over your borders. If they really are refugees, and really are "fleeing war and persecution," as everyone says, then where are the women and children and old people? Normally, the young men stay behind to fight, while the women and children and elderly flee. Truth is they are mostly rootless young men, and in many cases, no doubt, the only thing they are "fleeing" is the police!!

I didn't vote for Brexit, but I see no reason not to trust our own legal system. The liberal-left generally hate Britain (and especially England), so naturally they will prefer European courts to our own. It's the left who are scaremongering.

Good post. Nice to see not everyone is a 'libbot' mindlessly regurgitating what they've read in The Guardian.

This problem is only going to get worse and worse. And the reason is simple - Africa's birth rate. Africa has the highest birth rate in the world. In fact, its birth rate is so high that its population is going to double by 2050. (Yes, I know many of the current migrants are from Iran and Afghanistan; my point is simply that this will never end).

Africa also has the lowest life expectancy. 40 in many countries.

@Kris02 it baffles me that people weigh in on immigration when they clearly don’t have any knowledge of the asylum system 😁

No, they haven’t “come here illegally”. Familiarise yourself with the 1951 refugee convention.

Yes it’s not a big deal to want control over your borders. So why do the conservative government reject plans like safe routes and resettlement schemes which would allow for them to control numbers, and instead allow the uncontrolled boat crossings to continue? That’s a government policy decision.

“Why is it only healthy young men??” has been answered 100 times, and the answer is much less surprising than anyone thinks. The journey from Iran/Afghanistan/Eritrea is physically very hard. Add into that the risks of violence against women and girls while on the journey and at camps in Libya, and it is incredibly risky to expect women and children to do that journey. The slavery camps in Libya (how you pay for your boat crossing when you don’t have money, or when you do have money but the people smugglers don’t consider it enough) are brutal and leave people with mental and physical scars. The vast majority of men will not put their family in such a dangerous position.

Instead women and children more often travel to refugee camps in neighbouring countries where conditions are bad, but are safer than the journey.

Also, statistics show that men are far more at risk of death in the countries that they are leaving than women and children.

Why did you think it was ok to write your post without even a basic understanding of any of these points?

Although you do (accidentally) hit on a truth that some of them are “running from the police”. In some cases, yes they are running from the police in their countries, as they face imprisonment, torture or state sanctified murder for their political or religious beliefs.

Honestly, even the most basic research about the places asylum seekers are coming from would have shown all of this.

They have been trying to dismantle Human Rights for years but we’re prevented from doing so because of the protection of the EU.

The gloves are coming off and I suspect it’s the first of many ‘rights’ to be torn up and put together in a way that is more palatable to the Tori’s.

I reckon maternity rights will be the next on their hit list.

Good grief, don’t you just love autocorrect 🙄

Why did you think it was ok to write your post without even a basic understanding of any of these points?

Its depressing that someone could be so poorly informed.